1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to skates and more particularly is directed toward a new and improved ball skate for use on streets, sidewalks, floors and similar surfaces.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Standard roller skates usually involve four metal or hard rubber rollers on each skate and have been used for many years for both indoor and outdoor rollerskating activities. While rollerskating has been a popular pastime, the skates employed have not been capable of the same movements that are possible with conventional ice skates on ice. Generally speaking, roller skates function with all four rollers engaging the floor, pavement, etc., limiting the wearer to a somewhat flat-footed action. While it has been proposed heretofore to employ balls in lieu of the rollers as the primary rolling elements, such ball skates have utilized either simple sockets or ball bearings to support larger balls. This arrangement has been objectionable from the standpoint of too much overall friction or too little directional control so that the balls are free to move in any direction. Such unlimited of movement of the ball would make the skates difficult to control.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide ball skates which are easy to control and function in a manner much like that of conventional ice skates. Another object of this invention is to provide a pair of ball skates of simple, low cost construction and which offer freedom of movement backwards and forwards but inhibit sideways movement thereof.